The day after Hurricane Rita, Daphne Pierce McGhan and her family returned home to assess the damage and went to work clearing away debris.

Near the hurricane’s 10-year anniversary mark, the family finished the outside kitchen that uses materials salvaged from the storm.

“We love to entertain family and friends like most people in the south,” Daphne said, “and of course good entertaining includes good food. I love cooking and the outside kitchen allows us to combine being outside, food and family.”

Some people pin their favorites from Pinterest. Daphne and her husband, Matt turn ideas into reality. He’s a carpenter who has worked for Habitat for Humanity. She admits her honey-do list can get a little long for her can-do hubby, but she doesn’t mind swinging the hammer, climbing the ladder, pulling wires and helping pour concrete.

“We work well together. With a lot of imagination, planning and hard work we began to salvage things to help us achieve our outdoor oasis,” Daphne said.

The only new purchase was plywood, a couple of four-by-six posts and the concrete.

“Almost everything was salvaged.”

Daphne and Matt used rough-cut wood from trees and a fence downed by the hurricane. They saved some rafters from a house being torn down in Westlake near Sasol and tore down an outgrown playhouse and used parts of it.

They also used their creativity to complete their 24-foot-by-14-foot outside kitchen.

The fire pit in an adjacent area is an old 22-inch rim. A chicken bitty waterer was repurposed as a light shade. A pipe crate used to ship a tractor part provides the frame for the kitchen island that’s wrapped in old tin and stamped with a fleur de lis.

Vintage white enamelware, a crosscut saw and an antique cast iron corn shucker are family keepsakes that have been passed down, perfect additions to the well-designed and rustic kitchen. They give Daphne’s parents the perfect opportunity to tell her and their grandchildren about their childhood and the outdoor kitchen will continue to be a reminder of how even the chaos created by a hurricane can be turned into something great by working hard, cooperating and using ingenuity.

The decision to do an outdoor kitchen was a no-brainer for a family who loves the outdoors